Bo and Luke Duke were returning to their car, the General Lee, after an unsuccessful day of fishing.
     “I can’t believe that not even one single fish bit today.” Bo complained.
    “Yeah, I know.” Luke agreed.
They were just about to the car when the ground began to tremble.
    “What the heck?” Bo asked, looking to his older cousin, as he always did for the answer.
    “It’s an earthquake.” Luke said, glancing around for anywhere they could find safety but quickly seeing there was nowhere they could go.
    “Here in Hazzard?”
Before Luke could responding the ground beneath them cracked open, both gave a scream of terror as the plummeted down through the ground. They seemed to fall forever before finally hitting the ground, having fallen into one of the many caverns that ran beneath the town of Hazzard, over thirty feet below.
    Bo had been momentarily knocked out and he opened his eyes and looked around, the small, very small cavern, that was barely bigger then his closet back at home and he felt a tinge of claustrophobia clench around his heart. A fear he had ever since he was a young child and been locked in a cage on the old circus train for several days. It wasn’t so much the small places that bothered him, it was being alone in them.
    “Luke?” Bo called out not seeing his cousin there with him, his fear heightened.
Bo’s eyes scanned around the cavern, when he noticed several large spiders in the cavern with him, he wasn’t sure but he thought that they looked like tarantulas, spiders were the other thing he feared and the two things combined made him tremble with fear.
    “LUKE?” Bo screamed loudly.
    Luke heard Bo’s scream just as consciousness slowly began to return to his mind, and he moaned softly, he tried to move but found himself pinned beneath a large pile of debris, his whole body ached with pain.
    “Bo?”
    “Luke is that you?”
    “Yeah.”
    “Where are you?” Bo said, trying to judge Luke’s location based on the sound of his voice.
    “I don’t know.”
    “Luke, I’m scared.” Bo admitted. “It’s small in here . . . and there’s spiders.”
    “It’s okay, Bo, you are not alone.” Luke said reassuringly.
    “But I feel alone. I can’t see you.” Bo said.
    “But you can hear my voice.”
    “Yeah but . . . I want you here with me so I can see you.”
    “I can’t move, Bo.” Luke said. “You’ll have to get me out of here.”
Luke could tell his injures were bad, his right leg had been alive with a fiery pain and it was now going numb.
    “I . . .” Bo started to say when the ground began to rumble again, and he screamed in fear, fearing this place would cave in on him and Luke. “Luke?” Bo questioned after it was over.
    “Bo . . .” Luke said, in a softer, weaker voice.
    “Are you okay?” Bo asked.
Luke was silent for a moment, not sure if he should tell Bo how badly he was hurt, he could taste blood in his mouth now, and it was becoming harder to breathe.
    “Luke?”
    “No, I’m not okay.”
Bo felt his stomach tighten in worry. “What’s wrong?”
    “It’s bad, Bo. I don’t think I will make it out of here.”
    “You have to.” Bo said, desperately wishing that Luke was trapped in the same cavern with him, not just so he wouldn’t be alone but so he could help Luke.
There was a few moments of silence they felt like forever to Bo.
    “Luke, would you please talk to me as much as you can . . . for as long as you can.” Bo said, in a pleading voice. “I don’t want to feel alone.”
    “I don’t want to either.” Luke said. “Bo?”
    “Yeah, Luke?”
    “Would you try to find me from the sound of my voice. I  . . . I want to at least see you one last time before I . . . die.”
    “You ain’t gonna die, Luke, you ain’t.” Bo said, feeling tears start to streak his cheeks at the thought of losing Luke.
    “Just . . . please, Bo.”
     “Of course.”
     “Thanks, brother.” Luke said.
    “Anytime, bro.” Bo said.
The two cousins had always been more like brothers then cousins, having became blood brothers at a young age, and their friendship was deep and eternal. Luke talked to Bo, ignoring his pain as he spoke. Bo followed the sound of Luke’s voice over to a pile of rocks. Bo started to move the rocks, and as he did a spider scurried over his hand, Bo screamed and stumbled backwards.
    “Bo, what’s wrong are you okay?” Luke asked in a very concerned voice.
    “There’s spiders everywhere in here.” Bo said, in a frightened childlike voice, but he somehow knew that Luke was behind that pile of rocks.
    “Just don’t be afraid, Bo.” Luke said.
    “I can’t help it . . . but I’d rather deal with the spiders then deal with not being . . . able to get to you.” Bo said.
Bo stepped forward again and started moving the rocks again. Luke kept talking to Bo, but Bo could hear the pain on the edges of Luke’s voice and was aware of the fact that Luke’s voice was growing softer. It took several minutes But finally Bo could see Luke, partially buried by the rocks, there was enough light from overhead to see clearly and Bo could see Luke’s blood on the rocks.
    “Luke . . .” Bo said in a tear filled voice.
Luke looked at Bo and smiled softly. “Hey, Bo.” He said flinching as Bo moved away the rocks.
    “You are gonna be just fine.” Bo said, trying to convince himself even as he said those words.
    “No, I won’t be.” Luke said, he knew his death was coming. “But, promise me something.”
    “What’s that?” Bo asked.
    “That you’ll be okay.” Luke said.
    “I . . .” Bo said he wasn’t sure what Luke meant for moment but he suddenly understood, he knew as soon as Luke died a part of him would die and he would want to die then too. “I don’t know if I can.”
    “Please, promise me that you will. I want you to.” Luke said, surprised with the knowledge of the life of his own soul he had before death, and he had to know before he died that Bo would at least attempt to carry on.
    “I’ll try.” Bo said, he knew that was the most he could promise he didn’t know if he could and he couldn’t lie to Luke and say he would.
    “I guess that is the best I can ask for.” Luke said, and then coughed up a small amount of blood.
    “Please don’t die, Luke.” Bo pleaded, his tears flowing freely.
Luke smiled softly at Bo, his own tears streaking his cheeks, he knew the time of his death was close, and there was no longer any pain. “Sorry, Bo. You have always been my brother and my best friend, a part of my soul.”
    “You are those things to me too, Luke.” Bo said, he knew that Luke was going to die and then he would be trapped alone.
Bo gently picked Luke up into his arms and held him close, crying quietly.
    “I love you, Bo.” Luke said.
    “I love you too, Luke.” Bo said, though became aware that Luke’s body had gone still, his heart no longer beating. “NO!” Bo screamed and broke down sobbing.
     Luke felt himself rise from his body, and he noticed a bright glowing light a short distance in front of him. He took a step towards the light, feeling himself being pulled towards it. He stopped and turned around and saw Bo and his heart ached for his younger cousin, he could almost feel Bo sadness and his fear. It was then that Luke knew he couldn’t leave, he couldn’t go into the light and leave Bo alone. Luke stepped back over to Bo and sat on the ground beside him, placing an arm around Bo’s shoulders, speaking softly in attempts to soothe Bo’s tears.
     Bo felt his tears begin to tamper off, he suddenly felt very calm, even though he knew he was alone and Luke was dead he felt that he could still sense Luke there with him. Bo laid his head down on top of Luke’s, still holding him close, just for the sake of closeness more then anything. The feeling of Luke’s cold dead body didn’t provide much comfort and Bo wasn’t even sure why he had any comfort at all when he felt like doing nothing more then crying.
     “Luke . . . I already miss you. I feel like you are still here with me but . . . it ain’t quite the same. “ Bo said, wishing for response. “I’m still scared, scared that we . . . I’ll never be found. I want to try to keep the last promise I made to you . . . but I don’t know if I can.”
     “It’ll be okay, Bo, you just have to be brave. You have to try to survive and not give in to your fears. I am here for you . . .” Luke said his voice trailing off realizing that it was almost pointless as Bo couldn’t hear him, even though he could still feel Bo.
     “Luke . . . if you are here please don’t leave me.” Bo said. “I never told your before that you have always been like a big brother to me and have always been the only one I could always turn to and at times . . . you have been almost a . . . father to me. When we were young and Uncles Jesse was running shine it was you who looked after me and you still do. I guess that is why I take stupid chances at times because I always know that you’ll be right there to protect me . . . to save me, and I thank you for that. I just wish I had the chance to tell you all these things to your face . . . so I know that you understand how I feel. You were the best friend I could ever have or ever want . . .” Bo’s voice trailed off.
Luke felt tears in his eyes from Bo’s touching words. “I am here, Bo, and I hear you. I understand how you feel. I just wish you could hear me.”
Bo closed his eyes, he knew he should more upset about Luke’s death and he felt a little bad about it, but some part of him knew that Luke really wasn’t gone and gave him a feeling of peace. Bo sighed softly and began to sing softly just to break through the silence.
     It was an hour later when Bo heard noises coming from overhead.
     “IS SOMEOENE UP THERE?” Bo yelled.
     “BO?” Jesse yelled down into the chasm.
     “UNCLE JESSE!” Bo yelled, in relief.
     “HOLD ON WE’LL GET YOU OUT OF THERE!” Jesse said. “IS LUKE OKAY?”
Bo didn’t reply not sure of what to say and Jesse took Bo’s silence as a bad sign. Jesse along with Cooter and Daisy used Cooter’s tow truck to lower a chain down into the chasm, which Cooter went down on to help Bo.
     “Bo, you okay?” Cooter asked approaching, and noticed Bo holding Luke, noticing the blood. “Is Luke okay?”
Bo looked up at Cooter, the response locking in his throat. “No.”
     “Maybe you should lay him back down and not aggravate the injures anymore.” Cooter said, thinking Bo seemed far to calm for Luke to anything more then just injured.
     “It wouldn’t make a difference . . . he’s already dead.”
     “What? Are you sure?” Cooter asked, kneeling beside Bo, and checking Luke’s neck for a pulse, finding none, and feeling how cold Luke was.
     “I am sure, Cooter, he died a while ago . . . shortly after we got trapped down in here . . . after that aftershock . . . and I reached him . . .”
     “It’ll be okay, Bo.” Cooter said, assuming that Bo had gone into shock. “C’mon I’ll get you out of here.”
Bo nodded and stood up, his legs feeling too weak to support his weight, and Cooter caught him before he fell to the ground. Cooter led him over to the chain, both standing on the wide hook, with Cooter holding Bo on.
     “BRING US UP!” Cooter shouted up.
Jesse hit the button to raise the chain and it slowly moved upwards. He quickly helped Bo unto solid ground. Luke had found he could move between places with a single thought, and stood near Bo, just offering silent comfort, as Jesse held Bo and Daisy fussed over him.
     “What about Luke?” Jesse asked looking up at Cooter.
     “He didn’t make it.” Cooter said tearfully.
     “Luke’s dead. He was hurt bad and he died.” Bo said.
Bo’s voice was so calm about it that Jesse was worried. Daisy broke down in tears and leaned against her uncle, who put one arm around her, his own tears streaking his cheeks, the only, living, Duke not crying was Bo, even Cooter was crying for his dead friend.
     “How are we gonna get . . . Luke’s body up here?” Daisy asked suddenly.
     “I can do it.” Bo said.
     “You need to get to a doctor and have your injures checked out and get something for the shock.” Jesse said.
     “I ain’t in shock.” Bo said.
     “Yes, you are.” Jesse said.
Bo wanted to argue but knew it’d do little good.
     “Why don’t you get Bo to the doc’s I can call the coroners for you and have Luke’s body brought up and taken to the morgue.” Cooter said.
     “Thank you, Cooter.” Jesse said, helping his nephew to his feet, and leading him towards the pick up truck.
     Jesse and Daisy waited in the waiting room while the doctor looked at Bo. The doctor’s office was quite busy with people suffering from mild injures as a result of the earthquake. Luke remained with Bo, not wanting to leave Bo alone, he wasn’t being conceited but he knew it was his presence that was keeping Bo calm.
     “How are you feeling?” Doc Appleby asked.
     “Tired and a little sore all over.” Bo said.
     “You uncle told me what happened. You seem to be handling things rather well.”
     “If you mean that I seem calm it is because I feel calm. It’s hard to explain but I can still feel Luke’s presence even now.” Bo said.
The kind old doctor just nodded as he continued his examination.
     “It’s the truth.” Bo said, with conviction, though he didn’t care who believed him, for he knew that it was the truth.
The doctor was silent not wanting to get Bo agitated, thinking it might be better to keep him calm.
     “Well, you didn’t break anything, just some mild bruising and you twisted your left ankle, but you’ll only need to wear a tension bandage around that.”
     ‘Why do I have such mild injures and Luke DIED because he was hurt so bad?’ Bo questioned to himself, finding it unfair, he just gave a slight nod.
     “I’ll give you a prescription for the pain.” Doc Appleby said.
     “Okay.” Bo said, eager to just get out of there, wanting to go home.
     The three Dukes returned to the farm, Jesse and Daisy were both still upset and surprised at how calm Bo was remaining, thinking he would be more upset then anyone, Jesse was sure that Bo was in shock even if he denied it. After Bo got settled down in the bedroom that was now only his, being as Luke was gone, Jesse left to go tend to the details of arranging Luke’s funeral. Daisy stayed in her room, eventually crying herself into an exhausted sleep. The painkiller took the edge off the pain and allowed Bo to drift into a deep sleep.
     In his sleep Bo dreamed of what had happened, seeing Luke’s dead body once again and feeling alone. Luke was sitting on the edge of bed, he could sense the bad dreams Bo was going through and wanted to take away that pain. Luke placed a hand on the side of Bo’s head, changing Bo’s dreams to more pleasant memories. Once Bo was in a deep sleep he went to check on Daisy. He knew she was upset and tried to reach out to her but couldn’t, he realized the reason he could reach Bo was because they were blood brothers and were spiritually tied together in a way he didn’t really understand. So, he went back to remain at Bo’s side.
     Jesse made the arrangements for Luke’s funeral to be in two days, it broke his heart to have to do this for his oldest nephew, actually having to admit that Luke was dead. He returned to the farm and checked on his niece and nephew before retreating to his own bedroom to look through old pictures allowing his grieving tears to flow down his cheeks. Luke tried to reach him, but found it was pointless, as it had been trying to reach Daisy, he knew that Bo was the only one that he could help.
     Jesse began to worry about Bo when he was staying so calm about everything, thinking he was either still in shock or was refusing to admit that Luke was gone. He figured it was a little of both as he kept insisting that Luke’s spirit was still there with him. Even on the day of Luke’s funeral Bo barely seemed phased, and was the calmest one there.
 Bo stood by Luke’s open casket the whole time that everyone came by to pay his or her respects. Everyone else quickly walked past, not seeming able to deal with the fact Luke had died so young and in such a tragic way. Bo stood looking at Luke, a part of him wishing that Luke would just sit up and everything would be fine. He felt he should be more sad, this was one of the saddest days of his life, but he couldn’t find any tears to cry and he still could sense Luke’s spirit there with him and that gave him a great comfort. He felt like even though it was Luke’s body he was looking at it wasn’t really Luke any more, but with feeling Luke’s presence and seeing “him” it gave him great comfort. Bo took a seat when the preacher gave the eulogy. Bo was the only one not crying, he still couldn’t bring himself to shed any tears, though he knew the reason was something that nobody else would ever understand.
    Things were much the same at the graveside, Bo wanted to cry, feeling he should after all it was his cousin, his best friend, his brother’s casket being lowered into the ground and a part of him felt numb because of it. Luke was still standing by Bo’s side with a gentle hand on his shoulder, grateful for the bond they shared to allow him to still be able to take away Bo’s pain, though he wished he could do the same for the rest of his family.
    The funeral was over, and everybody started to leave.
    “It’s time to go home, Bo.” Jesse said.
    “I want to stay here for while longer.” Bo said.
    “Are you sure?” Jesse asked.
Bo nodded. “Yeah. I’ll be home after a while.”
     “Are you at least going to be there for the wake?” Daisy asked, speaking for the first time that day.
     “I don’t know.” Bo said. “Just take the truck and go home. I brought the General anyway so I’ll be able to get home just fine.”
     “Yeah, okay.” Jesse said, he didn’t see how Bo could drive around in that car, because even when he looked at it he thought of Luke and figured it “should” be a lot harder for Bo.
     “I’ll be okay.” Bo said, just wanting some time alone at Luke’s grave.
     “Just don’t be too late.” Jesse said, giving his nephew a hug, more for his own comfort then Bo’s.
     “I won’t.” Bo said and watching Jesse and Daisy walk away, then turned back to stare at the gravestone. “It ain’t fair.”
     “Nobody ever said that life was suppose to be fair.” Luke said.
Bo thought he heard Luke’s voice ad raised his head, thinking he had to have imagined it. Luke wondered if Bo could hear him, wishing that he could actually talk to Bo and appear to him. Bo felt a cool breeze billow around him, gently ruffling his hair, he felt Luke’s presence grow stronger and saw a light shimmering next to him, and slowly take the form of his older cousin.
     “Luke.” Bo said, his voice catching slightly in his throat.
Luke smiled at Bo. “Hey, Bo.”
     “Is it . . . is it really you?”
     “Last time I checked.” Luke said.
     “But . . . but you were killed.” Bo said, surprised at how calm felt even though his mind told him he should be afraid of the fact a ghost was standing there with him, but he could never be afraid of Luke.
     “Yes, I was. But I am still here with you, I couldn’t leave you.” Luke said.
     “Please stay with me. I don’t want to be alone.” Bo said.
     “You won’t be alone now.”
     “I will be if you leave me.” Bo said, fearing Luke was going to go away forever now.
     “You have Uncle Jesse and Daisy.”
     “It’s not the same. I need you, Luke. You are my best friend. Please stay even for just a little longer.” Bo pleaded.
     “I can’t leave. I will always be with you, even if you can’t always see me don’t mean I ain’t there.” Luke said.
Bo smiled. “Thank you, Luke. I know even when I can’t see you I can sense your presence.”
Luke gave Bo a brotherly hug, something that seemed to comfort both of their souls.
     “I don’t want to go back home, not and have to see the . .  . wake. Everyone expects me to be sad and I feel I should be but knowing you are with me I can’t.”
     “That’s why I stayed and didn’t go into the light.” Luke said. “So you wouldn’t have to be sad. I just wish I could reach Uncle Jesse and Daisy as well, but I can’t no matter how hard I try.”
     “Maybe if I talked to them, make them see that you . . . or at least your spirit is still here with us.” Bo said.
     “It might do some good, I don’t know. You have tried to tell them, and it hasn’t done any good.” Luke said skeptically.
     “But now I am not just . . . it ain’t just feeling no more. I know you are here with me, I can see you . . .” Bo said and reached to put a hand on Luke’s shoulder. “I can even feel you.”
     “I never thought you could touch a ghost.” Luke joked.
     “You ain’t a ghost more like . . . a guardian angel of sorts.” Bo said. “At least to me you are.”
     “Yeah, I guess so.”
     “Will you stay here with me for a while? I mean so that I can see you and talk to you. I don’t want to go home right now.”
     “Yeah, but let’s at least go some place more comfortable then a graveyard.” Luke said.
     “How about down by the stream where we had built that fort when we were kids?” Bo suggested.
     “That sounds like a much better idea then staying here.”
     They walked towards the General in silence.
     “Luke?”
     “Yeah, Bo?”
     “Thank you.”
     “For what?”
     “For everything. I mean you could’ve left me but you didn’t.”
     “You would’ve done the same thing.”
Bo smiled widely, knowing that was the truth, he couldn’t have left Luke any more then Luke cold leave him. “That’s for sure.”
     They went down by the stream and spent the next few hours reminiscing about the past. During that time it seemed like everything was like it had been before Luke had died, even though they both knew otherwise. The sky began to darken as night approached.
     “It’s time for you to go home, Bo.”
     “Can you stay . . . visible?”
     “I don’t know. I don’t think so, I think I can only appear when the circumstances are just right.”
     “Oh.” Bo said sadly.
     “Just because you can’t see me doesn’t mean I ain’t there.” Luke said.
     “But . . .” Bo said wanting to argue with Luke to make him remain visible, but he knew there was nothing to say. “Will you at least . . . appear when I tell Uncle Jesse and Daisy? Maybe they will be able to see you.”
     “They won’t be able to. I can’t even reach them to make them sense my presence so there is no chance that they will be able to see me.” Luke said.
Bo spoke softly, his voice barely above a whisper. “At least I can, I would be dead if I couldn’t.”
     “It’ll be okay, Bo.” Luke said reassuringly.
Bo watched as Luke quickly faded out of view. He took a deep trembling breath as his cousin vanished from sight. He closed his eyes, and remained still for moment, just reaching once again for the feeling of Luke’s presence. He smiled joyfully when he felt Luke there with him and opened his eyes to head for the General.
     When Bo arrived home, both Jesse and Daisy were already asleep, so he headed down to his room. He put on a pair of old gray sweat pants to wear to bed, and laid down, glancing over at Luke’s empty bed, feeling a twinge of sadness knowing Luke would never be sleeping in it again. He closed his eyes, planning on telling Jesse and Daisy about Luke first thing in the morning, praying that they would at least listen to him and hopefully believe him and then perhaps they too could sense Luke’s spirit there with them. After only a few minutes Bo drifted into a deep, dreamless sleep.
     The next morning Bo went into the kitchen seeing Jesse and Daisy already sitting at the table eating breakfast, or at least trying to. They looked up at him when he walked into the room and took a seat at the table. Bo could sense Luke there with him, Luke stood behind his younger cousin with a hand on his shoulder.
     “Uncle Jesse, Daisy I need to talk to you about something.” Bo said, deciding there was no reason to delay talking about it.
     “What about him?” Jesse asked.
     “Promise to keep an open mind about this.” Bo said, feeling nervous about how they would react but knowing they needed to be told.
     “An open mind about what?” Daisy asked.
     “About what I am about to tell you.” Bo said.
     “Just tell it to us straight.” Jesse said.
Bo felt the air around him change and he could see Luke standing there by him, he smiled at his older cousin. “Well, remember how I told you before that I sensed that Luke’s spirit was still here?”
     “Well, Bo he will always in a way be with you, in your heart.” Jesse said.
     “It’s more then that. He is still here.” Bo said. “Can’t either of you see him?”
     “Now, Bo, just settle down.” Jesse said in a calm voice.
     “I am perfectly calm.” Bo said simply. “Can’t you see him.”
     “No, we can’t.” Daisy said answering for both of them.
     “I told you they wouldn’t be able to.” Luke said to Bo.
     “I know.” Bo whispered.
Both Jesse and Daisy were sitting there looking at Bo as though he had gone crazy.
     “You have to accept that Luke ain’t with us anymore, Bo.” Jesse said.
     “But he is.” Bo said defensively.
     “You know that ain’t truth.” Daisy said, looking as though she was going to cry over the mere talk of Luke.
     “But it is the truth. Can’t you even sense that he is here with us now?” Bo questioned.
Jesse stood up and walked over to Bo and placed a hand on Bo’s shoulder. “Bo, Luke ain’t with us anymore, you know that. There is no way he can be.”
     “Yes there is.” Bo glanced at Luke, his dark blue eyes asking for help explaining. “I don’t know what to say.”
     “Who are you talking to Bo?” Daisy asked.
     “Luke.” Bo said.
     “That ain’t possible so just stop saying it is.” Daisy said and broke down crying and ran out of the kitchen and down to her bedroom.
     “Now look what you done, you upset Daisy.” Jesse said.
     “I didn’t mean to. And if the two of you would listen to me there would be no reason to be upset at all. Luke is still here with us.” Bo said.
     “I have heard enough, now get down to you room.” Jesse said in a stern voice.
     “Yes, sir.” Bo said, and stormed off down to the bedroom, throwing himself down on the bed.
     Luke followed him, and sat on the edge of Bo’s bed. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to cause you this kind of trouble.
Bo sat up and looked at Luke. “Don’t be sorry. All I care is that I know you are here. I wish they would believe me but no matter what I know it is the truth that doesn’t cause me any trouble it . . . helps me.”
     “I wish that I could reach them too, but I can’t. I am grateful that I can at least reach out to you.”
     “It ain’t fair.” Bo said, struggling to keep from crying.
     “What ain’t fair?”
     “That you died and I was barely even injured.” Bo said, a few tears escaping from the corners of his eyes and streaking down his cheeks.
     “Things just work out that way sometimes.” Luke said.
     “Well it ain’t fair. I wish I had been killed too.”
     “Don’t say that, Bo. Don’t ever say that.” Luke said, pulling Bo in to a comforting brotherly hug.
Bo leaned his head against Luke’s shoulder and cried. Bo cried for several minutes before he finally spent his tears. He sat back wiped away the drying tears with the back of his hand.
     “Feeling any better?” Luke asked.
     “Not really.” Bo replied in a quiet voice. “I just wish they would at least listen to me and not think that I am crazy or something.”
     “Well you are crazy.” Luke joked trying to ease the tension of the situation.
Bo smiled. “Well gee thanks a lot, cousin, not like you are all that sane yourself.”
Luke laughed, glad to see that his cousin was starting to be in a bit better of a mood. He stayed and talked to Bo for the next couple hours, before fading from sight once again.
     Things remained tense at the farm for the next week. Anytime that Bo even mentioned Luke’s name it sent Daisy into a crying fit. Jesse decided that he had enough of this nonsense and figured to “play along” with Bo, and hired a so called “professional” to send Luke’s spirit on to the next realm, without telling Bo of course.
 Bo looked up from the old scrapbook when he heard the bedroom door open, he looked up and saw his uncle standing there with a stranger. Luke had been looking at the book over Bo’s shoulder and the second he saw the stranger he knew it wasn’t a good sign.
     “Who’s he?” Bo asked.
     “Bo, this is Sean Doyle, he specializes in the supernatural.” Jesse said.
     “What is he doing here?” Bo asked, having a bad feeling about this.
     “He is here to . . . send Luke’s spirit on into the light.” Jesse said.
     “You can’t do that.” Bo said jumping up, noticing Luke’s spirit appear next to him. “Luke . . .”
     “You can’t expect him to stay here, don’t you want to allow him to rest?” Jesse asked, thinking that would get to Bo.
     “It AIN’T like that.” Bo said, his heart pounding with fear.
     “The spirit is here in the room.” Sean said.
     “Gee no kidding.” Luke said sarcastically to Bo, refusing to leave his younger cousin’s side.
     “Now, Bo, just take a seat and let him do his job.” Jesse said.
     “NO, YOU CAN’T DO THIS!” Bo yelled. “Please, Uncle Jesse, please don’t try to take Luke away from me.”
Luke put an arm around Bo’s shoulders as he noticed Bo on the verge of tears.
     “Please don’t leave me, Luke.” Bo pleaded.
     “I won’t  . . . not under my own freewill.” Luke said, wondering if once this guy preformed this ritual if he would have any choice.
     Sean drew large white symbol on the floor, and placed four candles around the circle, to the compass point. He spoke in an ancient tongue that neither Jesse nor Bo understood, as he lit each candle. The flames jumped and glowed brightly and Sean continued to speaking in the strange language, the chanting of words sounding almost like a song.
     Bo looked at looked Luke, noticing that his very form was glowing, he feared he was going to lose Luke but his voice was trapped in his throat, he could only look at Luke with wide frightened dark blue eyes, that shimmered with unshed tears. Luke forced a smile as he looked at Bo, he knew that he could no longer stay there.
     “I’ll see you on the other side, Bo.” Luke said.
Bo wanted to tell Luke not to go, to beg him to stay but his words remained locked inside of him.
Even though Bo hadn’t spoken Luke knew what he was thinking. “The choice is no longer mine.”
Luke felt a compelling force drawing him in the circle, and he stood in the center of the symbol on the floor. A shimmering light made of many shades of blue filled the circle, Luke raised his hand to wave farewell to Bo, just before the light consumed him. Both the light and Luke were then gone.
     “NO!” Bo screamed dropping to his knees, continuously screaming no, making Jesse wonder if he had indeed done the right thing.
Sean gathered his belongs, wiping the symbol from the floor. Jesse thanked him and showed him out.
     Jesse returned to the bedroom and saw Bo curled up on the floor in a fetal position soundlessly sobbing. Jesse knelt down next to Bo, and put a hand on Bo’s trembling shoulder.
     “I did what I felt was right.” Jesse said as though to justify what had happened to himself, since he now had his own doubts.
Bo didn’t say anything or give any indication that he had even heard his uncle. Jesse tried to reach Bo for the next hour, but nothing he said or did seemed to get through to Bo. Bo felt alone having seen Luke taken away from him right before his eyes, feeling as though a part of himself had been cast away with Luke.  After a while Jesse gave up, and left the room, leaving the farm altogether, going the Boar’s Nest where Daisy was working, trying to busy herself with work as not to think about the recent tragic event.
     After Jesse left, Bo got slowly to his feet. He made his way into the bathroom and pulled a small bottle of sleeping pills from the comfort, which Daisy had got a prescription for as she had been unable to sleep. He made his way out to the front room and found the bottle, of “medicinal” shine that Jesse had hidden away. Bo went back into the bedroom and wrote a short note to his family, telling them he couldn’t live without Luke and placed it on the nightstand. He sat down on Luke’s bed, and took the lid off the bottle of sleeping pills and dumped them all into his mouth, some ten pills, and swallowed. He opened the bottle of shine and drank it to help wash down the pills. His body almost instantly started to feel numb, but he managed to finish the bottle of shine, before collapsing against the bed into a deep sleep, his heart and breathing quickly beginning to slow down until both ceased altogether.
     Bo opened his eyes and sat up, his first thought was it hadn’t worked, but he realized that he was no longer in his body, he saw a bright light just off the foot of the bed. A figure emerged from the light.
 “Luke.” Bo cried happily, jumping off the bed and running over to him. “I never thought I’d see you again.”
     “Bo . .  .” Luke started to say.
     “I know what you are going to say but I had to Luke. I couldn’t live after you were taken away from me . . . not like that.”
     “Let’s go, Bo.”
     “Go where, heaven?”
     “Not really, it’s sort of like a waiting place, before passing on to the next life.”
     “So we won’t be together for long?” Bo asked sadly.
     “Yes we will be there for a while, it is peaceful place. I came here to get you and bring you across.”  Luke said.
     “Who else is there . . . I mean are our parents there?”
     “No, they have already gone on to their next lives.”
     “Oh.” Bo said, recalling how when he was a kid he was told he would see them again someday in heaven, this all sounded so much different then what he had been told.
     “It is a nice place, Bo, very peaceful. I wouldn’t take you anywhere that wasn’t.”
     “I know you wouldn’t. I just wish I would’ve got the chance to see my parents again.”
     “I know, but once you are there it won’t matter, we will be together at least.”
     “But for who knows how long.”
     “Forever.”
     “What? You said . . .”
     “I said we wouldn’t be there, that don’t mean we won’t be together. You will understand once you cross into the light. I can’t really explain it to you.”
     “I believe you.” Bo said and smiled widely at his older cousin. “Thank you, Luke, for everything.”
     “Anytime, Bo.” Luke said and slung his arm over Bo’s shoulders. “Now let’s go.”
Bo smiled. “It already feels like old times . . . following you anywhere.”
Luke laughed good naturally. “Yeah it really does feel like old times. You ready to go now?” He asked, knowing how hard it was to leave this world behind.
     “Yeah, I’m ready. Let’s go.” Bo said.
The two cousins then stepped into the light and vanished, crossing over to place that was level beyond mortal existence, awaiting their next life.